Newly installed Gilas Women coach BT Toews didn’t sugarcoat what happened in the team’s 61-58 loss to Mexico in their 2028 FIBA Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament opener on Tuesday: They gave the game away by making silly mistakes.
Gilas Women, ranked No. 30 in women’s basketball, looked primed to notch their first win of the tournament after racing out to as much as a 15-point cushion in the first half. The nationals were still ahead, 57-47, in the fourth but gave up a 12-0 run to the hosts to surrender the lead and, ultimately, the game.
Mistakes Cost Gilas Women a Win
Afterward, Coach Toews didn’t hide his disappointment, lamenting how his team gave the game away in the second half.
“We have a locker room [with] really disappointed people right now. We all feel that we gave that game away. I don’t want to take anything away from Mexico, because they played a good second half, but we feel we gave that game away,” Toews said. “Everything turned upside down. We lost the rebounds, we lost the paint points, we lost the turnovers, we lost, I think, every category. And we were still ahead. But then in the time where we need to close as a team, we continued to make silly mistakes.”
Crucially, the two biggest mistakes came right at the very end of regulation, with Afril Bernardino throwing an errant pass for the turnover with Gilas Women down by just one, 59-58. Vanessa De Jesus exacerbated that costly miscue by committing a disruptive foul that gave Mexico, ranked No. 31 in the world, free throws and the ball—and the win.
Toews Wants Self-Reflection
With the loss behind them, Toews is hoping Gilas Women can put all their attention on what it takes to be better, especially with world No. 7 Canada as their next opponent.
“I prefer if everybody takes a few hours and focus on what it is we need to be meticulous about to be a strong team,” said Toews, who assumed head coaching duties only this May. “When that time is done, we flip the switch.”
That time to flip the switch is on Thursday morning, Manila time, when Gilas Women take on Canada.
